My Immigration Story: from Pakistan to Canada

Experience is possibly the biggest teacher we as human beings have, it shapes our dominant worldviews and allows us to view life in a perspective that is unique to the individual. Through this we can determine that our knowledge is cultivated by a never ending learning experience. Personal narrative essays are the way we voice our opinions and if we do not acknowledge it and consciously emphasize it then we are doing a massive injustice to ourselves in disregarding our existence and removing any kind of meaning to our life. Our personal narrative helps us to develop a personality, which becomes a foundation for our self-identity and as we grow and learn we add new perspectives to this foundation. It helps us interpret what is happening in the world, like most narratives it isn't the small everyday things that define our story, but the bigger experiences that have a big impact on our life is what characterize us. An individual's personal narrative paper does reflect in the way they view the world as it shapes their perspectives and allows them to view the world from an amalgamation of things that they have experienced.

Immigrating to Canada from Pakistan when I was five years old, was a big cultural shift for me, as a child who spoke Urdu as her primary form of communication, having to assimilate into an environment where English was the dominant language used was a big shock. Especially since my speaking capacity was not nearly as good as my comprehension of English, I remember distinctly on my second day of kindergarten after recess I asked a girl in Urdu 'what are we going to do now' and she walked away from me saying 'I don't know what you are saying'. This lead me to become unsure of my abilities as a child and become very shy doubting myself at every point. Even though I grew up in a predominantly multicultural school where Pakistani students were in great quantity which lead to a sort of solidarity amongst us, it was never hard to feel like I belonged. However when it came to a matter of authority I never saw myself represented in the school faculty, all my teachers were white males or females from kindergarten to grade seven.

As great as those teachers were and taught me so much in their respective subjects the aspect of relating to them and creating a connection that goes beyond sustenance and correlates into a compassionate academic nurturing, which is crucial for a growing mind was never actually there. They would talk about things to better relate to the students and I would be very unaware of what was going on because I didn't understand where there references were coming from, so even in the classroom their existed a feeling of isolation. Whenever I saw a teacher with a similar skin tone or a name I knew was of South Asian origin, I felt a great sense of pride and tended to create an affiliation with myself and that teacher, just because of the fact I felt represented. Due to the difference in culture my parents worked hard to instill a strong sense of Islam and Pakistani culture amongst me and by siblings, doing that primarily through finding a community which shared and valued the same beliefs as them; in doing so me and my siblings always had a very close connection to our roots. I believe it is this close relationship that my parents disseminated within me that allowed me to view a perspective larger than what my identity in Canada lead me to believe. Due to this I began to view myself as a Pakistani Canadian, not just one or the other instead it became a joint identity of where I am from my culture, religion and background and where I live, all of which determine my future.

Growing up in a country like Canada and being exposed to different types of cultures and religions and being a part of a diverse group of people meant that I was able to understand other perspectives just as well I was able to comprehend my own. However that type of understanding is something that those who have privilege tend to not recognize and go even far enough to claim it is something that is nonexistent. This reluctance to admitting their privilege is tied to recognizing that they have benefits that others do not have the luxury of enjoying. As a result of my personal experiences that have cultivated my perspective I have noticed many inequalities.